Exporting and Trading info

Conclusion Besides the federal programs it is apparent the various states, counties, cities, world trade centers, trade associations, ports, universities and colleges, all have something to offer in the quest for sources of information and assistance to expand profits and sales through exports. And yet, there are still more sources, including national or international organizations, such as AID, the World Bank, the U.N., and even an organization as unfamiliar to most as the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The contacts for all of these and many more may be found in the appendices or in the specific programs described elsewhere in exporters-sources.com - index page -. To enlarge on these examples, consider AID. This U.S. agency operates throughout the less developed countries of the world and administers economic assistance programs for the federal government in more than 60 developing countries, encouraging them to purchase U.S. goods and services with AI...

Financial assistance The SBA offers direct loan and loan guarantee programs to assist small businesses. In recent years Congress has increasingly mandated that SBA provide special attention to business support in the export area as the trade imbalance worsens. As a result, there are now parallel financial programs for export and for domestic business. Since the loan officers in SBA have historically concentrated on longer-term working capital loans and fixed asset loans, it is often difficult for them to adjust to the concept of trade finance and transaction-based collateral. Real efforts are being made by the organization, however, and even though the past usage history of the export-oriented SBA programs is dismal, it now appears their various guarantee programs and especially the ERLC guarantee described below should become an increasingly viable source of financial support for the exporter. Special training is being provided to loan officers handling international loans. To be el...

Agency for International Development (AID) Procurement Assistance SBA offers special help and performance guarantees through their 8(a) program to assist in procurement of AID contracts for overseas sales and services. This is accomplished within AID's OSDBU/MRC office and is detailed in Exporters-sources.com - index page - 13 under "The Agency for International Development" subheading.

SBDC/SBI Programs Business counseling and assistance are offered through Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) and to some extent any of them may be capable of providing export business information and counsel. However, some SBDCs are now being organized specifically around an export orientation. SBDCs are most often found in colleges and universities, but not exclusively. The Small Business Institute (SBI) programs are confined to some 450 learning centers because they utilize business students who provide counseling, surveys, and strategic and feasibility studies under faculty supervision.

SCORE/ACE Programs Individual assistance and training is available through the dedicated Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) whose members include more than 600 former exporters. The Active Corps of Executives (ACE) is a volunteer organization of more than 2,600 executives and provides a similar service. Many of these executives have had international trade experience and are pleased to impart their knowledge.

Office of International Trade The Office of International Trade offers many programs for exporters, such as: • Export Counseling: Through Export Counseling, individual counseling by international trade specialists is offered when available in the area. For this purpose it might be wise to investigate the counseling staff that is available from both the US&FCS and SBA if both offices are equally available to you. • Export Training: Export Training is generally offered by means of co-sponsorship with DOC and/or private sector organizations. • Legal Assistance: The Export Legal Assistance (ELAN) program offers free, initial consultations on the legal aspects of exporting through an arrangement with the Federal Bar Association by qualified attorneys in the International Law Council. • Export Information Program (XIS): The XIS provides data that is based on SITC product categories taken from U.N. data. Check for submission dateon this and, for that matter, all other sources of inf...

Loans for Export SBA 7(a)l 6 Export Loan If the purpose of the loan can be shown to be for the acquisition or modernization of facilities for the production of goods or services for export, SBA's 7(a)l6 program applies and the Omnibus Trade Bill increased the loan limit to $1 million for export support. The firm must prove it will expand exports or it is being adversely affected by imports. No more than $250,000 of the eligibility under 7(a) 16 may be for working capital in contrast to facilities. Export Revolving Line of Credit Loan (ERLC) The Export Revolving Line of Credit (ERLC) program is called the 7(a) 14 loan and is available for pre-export financing purposes to develop foreign markets or to finance production primarily the latter. Insured foreign accounts receivable may be financed and used for collateral as well. The maximum guarantee is for $750,000 and a term of 12 months with opportunity for annual renewals up to 36 months. In whichever combination of these or othe...

Regular Business Loan Programs Provide for loans or guarantees for the acquisition of land and building to 25 year terms, machinery and equipment to 10 years, and working capital to 7 years. The SBA guarantee for any loan mentioned here is for 85 percent, up to a maximum of $750,000, but SBA can guarantee 90 percent of loans under $155,000.

Small Business Answer Desk The Small Business Answer Desk is designed to provide information on specific issues and to refer inquiries to the SBA department or program officer who can best assist you. The answer desk can be reached at (800) 368-5855 or (202) 653-7561. The SBA was not established for any purpose of foreign trade, but today it also serves exporters through 10 regional offices across the United States with 107 regional, district, or branch offices in major cities. In addition, the Office of International Trade is a specialized source of information that is related to exporting. SBA is taking an increasingly active role in supporting and initiating export programs for small business. It sponsors free export counseling, seminars, conferences, and publications, in addition to financial assistance. Its export-oriented informational programs are provided through the Office of International Trade.

Small Business Administration (SBA) The Small Business Administration (SBA) offers a variety of programs to assist exporters. Some such programs are listed as follows:

City, county, academic, and port authority programs After understanding what the state has to offer, you should still take the time to check with the cities or counties within which you operate, as well as those more or less adjacent to you. The help available from a wide variety of agencies is too extensive to list, but here are some ideas to help you make sure you have investigated all possibilities. First, try the mayor's office, which will probably not only know what the city has to offer but most other government entities as well. If there is a world trade center near you, investigate their activities. They will also be knowledgeable about other programs in your area, which may include Centers for International Trade Development often situated in colleges or universities. Check also for local Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) that may include international skills. In the case of counties, the help would most often be related to agriculture or an especially vital in...

Current state programs States have found that they can successfully perform in new-to-export encouragement and counseling, trade lead distribution, trade promotion, foreign offices in key markets, and financial support. Trade promotion is a key activity and includes a variety of undertakings such as hosting overseas missions, presenting catalog shows, and facilitating arrangements for visiting foreign buyer delegations. A very popular and helpful form of promotion is in joint trade show pavilions to keep costs to a minimum and make it easier to undertake a first overseas showing. As states enter into partnership with Washington, DC, to provide a substantial boost to the federal effort, they expect the U.S. government to maintain or improve its existing efforts. However, there are warning signs that these expectations will not materialize and states should be alert to see that their congressmen are aware of this situation that threatens to neutralize state level expenditures and effo...

State and other organizations offering export assistance STATES ACROSS THE NATION ARE NOW RAPIDLY IMPLEMENTING EXPORT SUPPORT programs in great variety, realizing that their exporters and industries need more help than can possibly be expected from the federal government. Report after report has confirmed that the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) programs are not all they might be. Among the major industrialized nations, the United States spends the least per capita to promote exports. Canada spent $21.44 per citizen in 1987, an amount that was 18 times the United States figure of $ 1.20. Whether analyzed in Gross National Product (GNP) on exports in dollars, or by figures based on the population, the answer is the same. Besides the budget problems, there have been organizational and planning problems. These problems became more acute as the budget became more restricted and the costs of the overseas posts grew as the relative value of the dollar fell. Many legislatures, as well as ...

Export Credit Office This is the office for administration of the financial export support programs of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) and its administration of Public Law 480 (PL 480). The international financial programs of CCC, for trade finance support, tend to be buyer credit programs. The programs all have a government-to-government tilt involving determinations of country need and financial condition, as well as U.S. marketing objectives. In some aspects it is very concessionary, including humanitarian aid in the case of PL 480 and the long repayment terms of GSM-103. In these two programs it is more related to AID than Eximbank. As with all government programs, there is a tendency for them to evolve because of competition, budgetary restrictions, and reasons of state. While often buyer-originated, the programs can be utilized with exporter initiative, but this generally requires knowledge of the players and good advance planning. The Export Credit Office administers t...

Commodity and Marketing Programs (CMPs) The CMPs office is in part equivalent to the US&FCS at DOC in terms of marketing assistance programs. The Foreign Market Promotion Programs division and the Agricultural Information and Marketing Service (AIMS) division have been combined under CMP with what is known as the "High-Value Products" division. High-value products are usually completely processed foods such as soup, chocolate, pasta, and so forth. The High-Value Products division's job is to support and assist the international marketing of such products that are largely branded and have a greater job impact because they combine agriculture with manufacturing. CMPs areas of focus break down as follows. Foreign Market Promotion Program The Foreign Market Promotion Program activity currently has a $30 million budget to support direct promotion of specific commodities through overseas trade fairs and allied activities. Agricultural Information and Marketing Service (...

Office of General Sales Manager Division The Office of the General Sales Manager (OGSM) (for agricultural export promotion and export credit), who is also an associate administrator, administers the second major subdivision. This is the area that is most visible and useful to the agricultural exporter. It includes the Commodity Marketing Programs (CMPs) and the Export Credit Office for administration of the international export credit programs. An assistant administrator manages each office.

Foreign Agricultural Affairs The Foreign Agricultural Affairs office is USDA's own "State Department," with six world area officers located in Washington, DC, who may be contacted for initial orientation prior to direct contact with about 100 agricultural economists and trade specialists who are posted at about 70 U.S. embassies and consulates, covering 100 countries geographically. These overseas offices are comparable to the Foreign Commercial Service officers in the DOC. Their job includes global reporting, market development and expansion, detection of trade barriers, monitoring other nation's trade practices, and providing agricultural advice to the U.S. Ambassador in the area.

International Trade Policy This office encompasses agriculture's input into the General Agreement on Tariffs & Trade (GATT) and general policy issues as well as the General System of Preferences (GSP) and subsidy issues. It plays a major role in the President's U.S. Trade Representative Office (USTR). The first responsibility of the office is to make known USDA's position, relative to international policies. It has officers, divided into five teams by regions of the world, charged with the responsibility of knowing and reacting to the policies and trade practices of the other nations in that region.

International Agricultural Statistics The International Agricultural Statistics is responsible for foreign production estimates, export sales reporting and economic information compiled by DOC and the United Nations (U.N.). The Agricultural Product Reports help identify market opportunities for about 395 high-value and added-value products or product groups. The Country Agricultural Reports examine agricultural trade in 160 countries. For more information, contact their office at (202) 382-9509.

Foreign Affairs, Policy, and Statistics Divisions The Foreign Affairs, Policy, and Statistics Divisions make up the first subdivision, including the following offices managed by Assistant Administrators: International Agricultural Statistics, International Trade Policy, and Foreign Agricultural Affairs.